


Tribble'Vana!

by Amaeliss, background_vulcan, greatbirdofthegalaxy, JadeAbarai, SaritAadam, The_Norsiest, tuvokholdmyhandchallenge, yel_halansu



Category: Star Trek
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Species Swap, Tribbles (Star Trek), Trope Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-15
Updated: 2021-01-15
Packaged: 2021-03-13 14:53:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28780065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amaeliss/pseuds/Amaeliss, https://archiveofourown.org/users/background_vulcan/pseuds/background_vulcan, https://archiveofourown.org/users/greatbirdofthegalaxy/pseuds/greatbirdofthegalaxy, https://archiveofourown.org/users/JadeAbarai/pseuds/JadeAbarai, https://archiveofourown.org/users/SaritAadam/pseuds/SaritAadam, https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Norsiest/pseuds/The_Norsiest, https://archiveofourown.org/users/tuvokholdmyhandchallenge/pseuds/tuvokholdmyhandchallenge, https://archiveofourown.org/users/yel_halansu/pseuds/yel_halansu
Summary: T'Vana wakes up one morning as a tribble, what crimes will she commit?Written as part of the USS Tribble Threat RP for Species Swap Trope Day.
Kudos: 1
Collections: USS Tribble Threat





	Tribble'Vana!

The bridge was quiet, the rhythmic beeps of the machinery acting as a peaceful ambiance to the space as the gamma shift worked. Lt. Basma Ahmed slumped in the captains chair, humming silently to herself, trying to keep herself awake in spite of the tranquil atmosphere that tried to lull her into sleep. She watched the blue form of a nebula come into focus on the view screen.

"Ensign Sitek," she addresses the young Vulcan at the science station through a yawn. "Report, please."

"The Planetary Nebulae NGC-7710-A, rated as safe to travel through. All readouts are in order. And, Lt., perhaps you should think about getting more rest. Falling asleep on the bridge is not preferable." He says, and raises an eyebrow at her. Basma subtly rolls her eyes at her friend, and turns to the Caitian manning the piloting station.

"Well, sounds good to me. How long until we get there, Lt.?"

"Approximately 20 minutes at warp 1, Sir." Lt. M'Reon purrs.

"Great, keep the course and speed." She replied, leaning back in the chair again as the bridge fell silent once more. She watched the nebula get closer through the view screen, until the dusty blue space cloud was the only thing on it.

"Entering the nebula in 1 minute." M'Reon pipes up again, clicking a few buttons on their panel. There was a bit of turbulence as the ship moved into the cloud, but nothing alarming. Basma smiled, enjoying the view when she started to feel lightheaded. She tried to brush it off, but her vision got more and more blurred as the minuets ticked by. She turned her head just in time to catch Sitek falling to the floor. She tried to call out but all that left her mouth was a groan as she fell unconscious with the rest of her friends, and unbeknownst to her, the rest of the crew.

***

T'Vana wakes up in the warm darkness beneath her blankets. It takes her a moment to notice the changes, which dawn on her in waves: her small size... her lack of limbs... the insatiable hunger... the fluff covering the entirety of her round body. She tries to speak to Sslith, but only a tiny squeak comes out. She nudges against her, and very quickly realizes that is not Sslith's green scaly skin. Instead, a human woman lies sleeping beside her, and simply rolls over to ignore her squeaks when these increase in intensity.

Tribble'Vana scampers out of the bed and rolls onto the floor, her round shape not helping her keep balance. After laying on her back a few minutes, wriggling desperately, she manages to roll over and turn on her belly once again. She climbs onto her chair, and then onto her desk. She struggles to grip one of her calligraphy brushes, which is now the size of a spear compared to her body. She slowly nudges it towards the inkwell that always sits at her desk, planning to write a note to ask for help since she is unable to speak. However, the huge size and weight of the brush, combined with her lack of hands does not work in her favor, and her Vulcan strength is gone. The brush pushes against the inkwell and topples it over, spilling the pitch-black ink all over Tribble'Vana. She whines in distress and shakes violently from side to side trying to get rid of the liquid, much like a dog does when they get wet. The black ink stains the top area of her fluff, which resembles a Vulcan bowl cut.

Tribble'Vana stops and takes a deep breath to calm herself down and assess her situation. She can't speak, she can't write and she needs to find a way to turn herself back into a Vulcan. But before all that, she has a more pressing issue to attend to: the unstoppable hunger that is growing in her stomach, so strong that it prevents her from thinking clearly about anything else. With a resigned sigh, she clambers up a pile of books, onto the calligraphy scroll that hangs from her wall, and into the entrance of the vent. She disappears into the jefferies tubes with no sound but the occasional hungry whimper.

***

Tribble'Vana rolls around the vents trying not to panic, leaving a long trail of black ink in her wake.

***

  
There is a thumping noise coming from inside the wall, which EJ can clearly notice with his improved Vulcan hearing.  
  
A second thump can be heard, this time it seems to be coming from behind a removable console panel which is connected to the jefferies tubes.  
  
EJ frowns and gets up from his seat, opening the panel only to take an immediate step back.  
"Oh, fuck no..." He turns to the officers on bridge. "Guys, tribble alert!"  
  
Tribble'Vana let out a pitiful chirp. She recognizes EJ, his face is similar enough even with his new Vulcan features. She looks at him for a moment, wondering if she needs to run back through the jefferies tubes for safety, and decides to do so before she can be caught.

***

K'tsek awakes with a groan and is very displeased of himself. He hasn't loose consciousness in a bar since his first year at the academy.

He passes a hand on his forehead. The skin is smooth.

K'tsek looks up, and look in the mirror behind the bar.

A human man looks back.

K'tsek shrugs. Not the weirdest shit he has been turn into by far.

Finishing the martini who is sitting by his hand, K'tsek stands up and helps the other people in the lounge.

There is a clatter coming from behind the counter as Tribble'Vana emerges into the lounge from a drain tube, hoping that the people in the lounge would be friendlier to her than EJ and the rest of the bridge crew. She rolls around the floor squeaking at people for help, but they don't seem to notice her as they rush around in a panic.

With his 1m93, and the noise around him, K'tsek does not notice the small tribble on the floor, and almost step on her.

Tribble'Vana lets out an angry hiss as K'tsek almost steps on her- people need to be more careful!

Finally, K'tsek looked down , hearing the small hiss.

"Ql'yaH! A tribble!" Forgetting all dignity, and that he is technically not a Klingon at the moment, K'tsek jumps on the nearest chair.

Tribble'Vana lets out a sad peep. She shivers a bit, feeling uncomfortable in the open like that. She doesn't recognize K'tsek yet, but she is starting to realize most people are not going to be nice to her while she is in this form, and maybe she will need to sort this problem by herself. She rolls beneath K'tsek's chair, leaving a trail of ink behind her.

K'tsek follows the tribble with his eyes, making sure she goes away from him.

Tribble'Vana camps right beneath the chair for a few moments, thinking about what she should do. She is still hungry, so hungry that every time she tries to think about how to turn herself back into a Vulcan, she gets distracted by the rumbling in her stomach. Absentmindedly she starts nibbling on the carpet- it is not food, but making a chewing motion seems to calm her down a bit. She lets out a high-pitched hum as she tries to think...

K'tsek looks at the tribble suspiciously. Generally, a tribble would have attack him by now. He kneels on the chair, leans over the tribble and pokes her.

Tribble'Vana is startled and lets out a noise when she is poked, like a squeaky toy for a dog. She turns to K'tsek, and she slowly starts to recognize his features. So it wasn't just her and EJ! Everyone has been transformed, probably... T'Vana remembers that K'tsek is normally a Klingon, and is a bit worried that he will try to harm her while she is in this form. She needs to make him recognize her! She shakes around a bit, splattering a bit more ink around.

K'tsek frowns. Not aggressive than, good. He goes down the chair and leans to take Tribble'Vana. "Okay little pest, we do not need you around right now."

K'tsek takes Tribble'Vana in his hands. It is... not awful. She is soft and her little squeaks are actually adorable.

He looks around with the tribble in his hand. Now what?

T'Vana hisses in distress. She's been busted, and K'tsek still doesn't appear to recognize her. T'Vana tries to speak out her name, but instead only a series of squeaks in the same intonation come out

K'tsek absentmindedly pets T'Vana. He needs to find a way to keep the little animal from food.

Tribble'Vana can't help herself from purring when she is petted. It feels very nice- but it would be nicer if K'tsek would give her a snack. She turns to him with an inquisitive noise.

"Yes, we're going to find you a good home." K'tsek exits the lounge, still pensive about what to do with the tribble.

***

  
What used to be a dumb ass Klingon, now dumb ass human, enters the cafeteria with a tribble in hand. He still doesn't know what to do with the animal, but he knows he is hungry and one think better with a full stomach.  
  
Tribble'Vana chirps in excitement. The cafeteria! The best place to find a snack. She has accepted by now that K'tsek will not recognize her, so she decides to take a different approach. With her current appearance, it is logical to assume that most would find her endearing. Perhaps if she looks cute enough she can trick the Kling- the human into giving her food. She puffs up and nudges K'tsek's hand softly with a purr.  
  
"Oh yes, you are a good boy," K'tsek brush his thumb in the fur.  
K'tsek goes to the organic food, and with one hand, star pilling the most fat food he can in a plate.  
  
T'Vana lets out a tiny huff. She's not a boy! And she wants food! How illogical can thi-....  
  
Her thoughts are interrupted as soon as they go near the food, and she watches with her full attention as K'tsek starts piling up food on this plate. Spoonful after spoonful, the plate fills up with all sorts of nice-smelling fried items and delicious bread... T'Vana involuntarily lets out a wordless, pleading cry of desperation.  
  
"That's not good for what you got." K'tsek tells the tribble.  
He sits in a booth, puts T'Vana on his lap and start happily chewing a buttered pancake.  
  
T'Vana lets out a huffy sigh and assesses her situation. She could try to escape and get to the food in the cafeteria, but that would no doubt set K'tsek and the other officers after her. Instead, she decides to continue her plan of looking as cute as possible to get rewarded with a pancake. She puffs up, wiggles a bit, and rolls over; she then turns expectantly to K'tsek.  
  
K'tsek looks at her, warmth spreading in his chest. He has no idea tribbles could be that adorable.  
"Oh, alright, but just this once!" He hands a piece of pancake to the tribble, knowing he should feel guilty about it.  
  
Tribble'Vana lets out a happy squeal and devours the entire pancake, which is roughly the same size as her, in merely three bites. The sensation of eating is as blissful as a deep meditation, but her enthusiasm is quickly dampened when she realizes she is still hungry. It feels as if the tiny pancake had been thrown into the endless black hole of her stomach. Perhaps, she thinks, this is the normal state for a tribble- so hungry they can barely function, always in the search for more food and unable to think of anything else. She trembles sadly and flops on K'tsek's lap in defeat.  
  
"What's wrong boy?" K'tsek asks softly? "Did the pancake make you sick? Do you need to go to sickbay?" He waits for any form of answer.  
  
Tribble'Vana perks up. She feels fine aside from the devastating hunger, but the medical staff might be able to turn her back into a Vulcan. If not, at least she'll be close to Sindari, who might actually recognize her. Still, more food before leaving would be good... Tribble'Vana props herself up on K'tsek's lap and looks at the pancakes longingly.  
  
Seeing the little animal moving again, K'tsek feels better about her well being. He continues to eat, ignoring the tribble's look. He said he was giving pancake to her just this once, and he intend to keep his word, like any good warrior should!  
He gives her a doughnut.  
  
Tribble'Vana lets out a series of chirps that sound like laughter. Her plan is working! She devours the doughnut in two bites and nuzzles against K'tsek to let him know that she is just hungry and appreciates the food he's giving her.  
  
"Oh! You are an adorable little thing!" K'tsek pets her and laughs. "Wonder if the wife would let me keep you!"  
  
Tribble'Vana fluffs up with pride. She has made a Klingon feel compassion for tribbles- well, kind of. Feeling bold, she props herself up again and rolls onto the table, beside the breakfast plate. She does not take food without permission, but it takes a lot of restraint.  
  
K'tsek laughs again. It is quieter than when he was Klingon, but everyone still turns to him. "I guess we can share the plate." He moves a fried potato toward her.  
  
Tribble'Vana makes quick work of the potato. She pauses for a moment... she is not trying to push her luck, but the food is just there, taunting her in its delicious warm glory; and even though she is still the same Vulcan she normally is deep down, she cannot exercise the same amount of control she normally would over herself. She begins nibbling at a piece of toast that pokes out of the border of the plate.  
  
"Damn, you are hungry for your size!" K'tsek takes the plate away from her. "What are you, a walking stomach?" He stands up with his plate and returns to the buffet. When he comes back, he sets a second plate in front of the tribble. "Here. But it is the last time!"  
  
Tribble'Vana feels a bit offended at the call out. She can't help it! The man doesn't understand how much more annoying this is for her than it is for him. She cannot suppress her heartbreak when he takes the plate away, but she puffs up in excitement when the second plate is brought just for her. She rolls around the table expectantly making delighted squeaks, and nuzzles K'tsek's hand for a moment before launching herself onto the plate, devouring everything in it savagely.  
  
K'tsek looks at the tribble with happiness and pride. Hili has always said no to a pet but he doesn't understand why. This is so easy to care for!  
He digs into his own plate, making as much happy noise as T'Vana, but less cute.  
  
Once Tribble'Vana has finished her plate, she looks up expectantly at K'tsek. She still wants more. She makes a demanding chirping noise.  
  
K'tsek looks at T'Vana. This is beginning to get concerning. "There is no more."  
  
Tribble'Vana lets out a resigned sigh. She need to change her tactic. She nuzzles against K'tsek's hand affectionately to thank him and let him know that this is not personal, and with a little jump, she flops off the table and scuttles across the floor and into a vent once again.  
  
K'tsek runs after the tribble, but he's not quick enough. He kneels in front of the vent, calling the "good boy" for a few minutes.

***

Tribble'Vana advances through the jefferies tube system. She can hear K'tsek calling after her, and she legitimately feels sorry for leaving him- he must be very confused about being human all of a sudden too. Still, she is on a mission. Tribble'Vana sniffles the air for a second, and in a few moments she picks up a scent- it smells fresh and flowery, like a salad. She perks up and hurries in the direction of the smell...

***

Emily-James walks in, his usually expressive face more calm than usual, small pointed ears peaking out of his colorful curls, his eyebrows having completely changed shape.  
"Lodzhal ?" His voice is nervous.  
  
Lodzhal is meditating when he hears EJ's voice. He opens ink black eyes.  
He doesn't notice any change at first, until he registers how calm their face is, and pointy ears picking under the purple hair.  
He bites his cheeks, feeling all his effort to regain control being annihilate as he projects mild arousal. "Are you a Vulcan?"  
  
"I... Think so."  
His cheeks tint green as he feels the projection, and he instinctively resists showing any reaction.  
"It's weird."  
  
Tribble'Vana peeks out from the vent to assess her location. Lodzhal's lab seems to be the source of the fragrant smell... she gets a bit carried away when sniffling the air, she leans in too far and tumbles out with a distressed hiss, knocking a few test tubes and flasks. She freezes on the table, turning to Lodzhal and Emily-James in fear.  
  
Lodzhal is startled by the fall of the furry animal. He turns and looks at her with confusion.  
  
Tribble'Vana tries to call Lodzhal's name, but instead a couple of squeaks that resemble it come out.  
  
"You again?" He turns to Lodzhal. "This is a threat, if there's another around we're going to have an invasion!"  
  
Tribble'Vana lets out an outraged hiss at Emily-James. Why can he not see she's not a threat? It's obvious she is a fellow crew member if everyone has swapped species! Even Lodzhal is... wait, is he a Betazoid? Tribble'Vana concentrates all her energy into thinking of herself, in her Vulcan form, of her name, to see if Lodzhal could pick it up with his telepathy. A large part of her thoughts, however, are still about food.  
  
"It is probably one of our crew mate," Lodzhal turns to EJ, obvious to the secondary thought of the animal.  
  
"...It makes sense. I was worried for the safety of the crew."  
He runs a hand in his hair, embarrassed, and immediately takes it out at the sensitive contact.  
"Who do you think it is?"  
  
Tribble'Vana tries pronouncing her name, but once again it is useless. She shakes a bit- the ink on her fluff is starting to dry, but she can manage to sprinkle some drops around. She hopes this will help them connect the dots.  
  
"I do not know," Lodzhal watches the droplet fall all over his desk. "Maybe I can try to control my telepathy and see if I find anything useful?" Lodzhal kneels to be at eye level with the tribble and concentrate on her.  
  
Tribble'Vana tries again to think of herself, bringing forth her Vulcan face in her perfect eidetic memory, screaming her name in her head as hard as she can. The main thought in her head, however, remains the same: snacks  
  
Lodzhal stands up, and bites his cheek. "It seems that they are thinking of nothing but food."  
  
Tribble'Vana lets out another outraged huff. She rolls across the table, a bit more carefully this time so as to not knock anything over, and she soon spots the source of the fragrant smell that had brought her here: they are the fresh leaves that Lodzhal had collected to feed his bugs. They are sitting in a container, and Tribble'Vana nudges it experimentally. It does not open.  
  
Lodzhal grabs the tribble. "We better keep them away from the food," he tells EJ. "We should not take the risk to have baby tribbles." He doesn't know if it would happen, but better safe than sorry.  
  
Tribble'Vana grunts in annoyance. Leave it to Lodzhal to turn everything back to untoward behavior in such a fashion. She's not pregnant! She's just hungry. She wiggles in Lodzhal's grasp to try and free herself. The leaves look so fresh and tasty, she only wants to try them.  
  
"Agreed." He resists the temptation to pet them way more easily than he usually would.  
  
Lodzhal grabs one empty and small vivarium he usually use to put the bugs in while he cleans their enclosure. He hopes the person will not resent him for it. Forgetting to close the cage, he turns to EJ. "Why did you come here?"

  
"I was just wondering if you were okay, love. Everything changed very suddenly..."  
He himself was not sure how OK he was, but his usual hypersensitivity and disorganized thinking had somehow calmed down.  
  
Lodzhal smiles, a little wider than what he usually does, and offers an ozh'esta. It may not feel special to him anymore, but he still wants the contact with EJ. "It is a lot," he says. "I need to stop projecting my thought, but I will be alright. Thank you for checking on me."  
  
Tribble'Vana side-eyes Lodzhal as he offers up an ozh'esta to Emily-James, but she supposes they think they are alone. She imagines this is the perfect opportunity- her cage door is open, and these two are surely distracted. Quietly, she rolls out of the cage, and has to exercise incredible restraint to not go and investigate the leaves in the container once again. This helps her come up with another idea- the arboretum is bound to have lots of edible plants, and is much more unguarded than the cafeteria is... Tribble'Vana props herself up against an incubator and climbs on top, and from there, she reaches the vent once again and disappears into the jefferies tubes.

***

Tribble'Vana scampers around, and arrives at an intersection where two jefferies tubes meet, and she pauses, considering the choice with a hesitant squeak. She decides to go left, fully unaware that taking the right tube would take her directly to the arboretum. Instead, she is now headed straight to the med bay.

***

Tribble'Vana pokes out of a vent and studies the room. She quickly realizes it is not the arboretum, but on the bright side, it is the med bay! She pushes the latch of the vent with all her might until she's opened it enough to roll out onto the floor. She freezes when she sees a tall Ossurian, believing them to be Chief Anda, who draws their phaser at the mere mention of a tribble. However, after a few moments, Tribble'Vana realizes that it is actually Sindari, just who she wanted to see! She scuttles along the floor and nudges against her boot, making little squeaky noises to get her attention.

Sindari looks down at the round mass of fur. OH NO.

She hadn't seen any other crew members that were tribbles, she quickly scooped up the tribble and moved over to her desk. Praying to the elements that she caught it before it start to reproduce.

Tribble'Vana nuzzles against Sindari's hand lovingly and lets out a purr, believing she had recognized her.

Sindari absentmindedly petted it as she took a blood sample from the mound of fur. Where ever it had come from it was filthy...and covered in ink.

Sindari stared at the tribble shocked.

There was no way.

"T'Vana!??"

Tribble'Vana lets out an excited chirp and fluffs up.

Sindari almost drops the hypo. Elements, she was going to lose her mind. She picked up her tribblefied girlfriend and looked at her.

"Please tell me you didn't eat anything." she said sternly.

Tribble'Vana makes a small squeaky sound that seems just a little bit guilty.

She quickly nuzzles up to Sindari's hand again, not only as an apology but also because she is genuinely glad to see her. Hopefully she will be able to help her...

Sindari frowned and went back to petting T'Vana. She was cute like this, though she still was a _veruul_ though if she had eaten. They couldn't deal with the chaos the crew was going through and a hoard of tribbles. What would happen if they managed to turn back?

Sindari leans back in her seat and continued to stroke the fluffy tribble.

Tribble'Vana is content to be petted. For the first time in the day she manages to calm down a bit. Even though she is still hungry, she decides that the snack can wait until later as she wants to enjoy being stroked a little more. Tribble'Vana lets out a steady stream of purrs that almost sounds like a relaxing hum.

Sindari smiled softly at the sounds that T'Vana was emitting. "Perhaps you should stay like this _veruul_ , you are much more free with your affections." She teased.

She sat there for a moment watching the med-bay and sighed. "I believe you might be the only one with any affection for me at the moment." she said mostly to herself.

Tribble'Vana perks up with an inquisitive chirp. She soon nuzzles against Sindari's hand more intently, trying to comfort her.

Sindari looked down and the nuzzling creature and gave her a quick kiss on her head. She pulled out her own tricorder and scanned. Surprisingly not pregnant, though she guessed that made sense. Technically T'Vana wasn't born a tribble.

But how long before she started multiplying and there were fuzzy little T'Vana clones scurrying around the ship. Sindari grabbed a container with high wall and placed her down gently.

"Sorry _veruul_ but I don't want you to multiply." She said giving her one last pat. Pulling up the data banks she pulled up everything on tribbles.

Tribble'Vana bonks against the container walls pathetically. She could see Sindari looking up information on tribbles, and made a frustrated grunt. If only she could speak, she could tell Sindari everything she needed to know... though there wasn't much. She was hungry, more than anything else, but she was also curious at Sindari's comment from before. Had she argued with Verelan?

Right on cue, an infuriated Klingon in too-small gym gear storms in. She is unfamiliar, the only visual clue to her identity is her pale silvery-gray eyes. Verelan's, unchanged.

"WHAT IN THE NAME OF KAHLESS IS GOING ON???" she roars.

Tribble'Vana's hair stand on end. She lets out an angry hiss- even though she recognizes Verelan, the reaction is instinctive, and her Vulcan control cannot help her suppress it

Surprisingly there were many different breeds of tribbles in the galaxy, they were in every size and color, apparently someone had even figured out how to make an invisible one.

Sindari looked up at the Klingon and blinked. Of course, the elements were punishing her. "We need a blood sample." She said grabbing a hypo.

Verelan recoils in instinctive horror as she spots a tribble.

"I suppose I know you too, agent," Verelan growls at the oddly familiar Ossurian.

Tribble'Vana stops hissing just for a moment when she notices the way Verelan addressed Sindari... so they did fight! Sadly, she cannot do anything at the moment except sulk. Even at her most upset, she is not very threatening.

Sindari says nothing but takes the blood sample. "T'Vana was also affected." Sindari explained looking at the glass container. She sealed the sample and turned back to her desk.

"You are free to go, there is nothing we can do right now." She said.

Verelan scowls at them both. As a Romulan, her insatiable curiosity would have made her find all this fascinating. As a Klingon? Pissed off. And hungry. She storms out without another word.

Tribble'Vana lets out another annoyed hiss at Verelan as she leaves, and puffs up in frustration as she sulks in the container

Sindari sighs and picks up the container holding T'Vana, "Well, _veruul_." She moves over to the pin holding the unfortunate ensigns and cadets. "Play nice with the others." She sets the container down gently in front of Ensign Peacock, "and do not eat anything" she warns.

Tribble'Vana lets out a grunt of anger. She is hungry! Why does Sindari not understand this? She huffs prissily at Ensign Peacock when he tries to sniff her. Tribble'Vana is hungry, she is mad that Sindari isn't petting her any more, and she's sad that the Romulans are upset with one another.

Inn walked into med-bay, arms behind his back and face blank.

Tribble'Vana looks up at Inn with curiosity. Once it becomes clear he is not going to help her out, she decides to take matters into her own hands. She launches her round little body against the wall of her container, once and again until it finally topples over. The other officers in the pen appear startled, but the medical staff walking around does not appear to have noticed. Once out of her container, Tribble'Vana is actually small enough to slip through the bars of the pen. She quickly rolls across the floor, between Sindari's feet and back out through the vent she came from. Ensign Peacock whines, and Tribble'Vana turns back to him. She would like to help them too, but she needs to take care of her hunger first- she nods solemnly as she promises to come back later for the others, and vanishes into the jefferies tubes once again in search for snacks.

***

Alexei blinked awake from where he was passed out behind the bar- wait was he just asleep? How in the ever loving fuck- he sat up rapidly and immediately rammed his head into the counter. " _Cyka blyat_!" he yells, bringing a hand to his head when we noticed it wasn't a hand at all. He scrambles up to look in the mirror- and an overgrown black cat stared back at him. Okay, this was some weird fucking hallucination he's having. Maybe some food could clear this up- he was feeling rather hungry. He stumbled out of the lounge on his new digitigrade legs, in search of the cafeteria.  
  
Tribble'Vana scuttles back into the lounge after losing her way once again. The bar appears almost empty, and it is the perfect opportunity to get a snack undetected. Tribble'Vana rolls behind the bar, climbs up a series of pipes and siphon tubes and finds a container of Natarian lemon slices. She shrugs- it's something, at least... she takes a bite of one and the bitterness sends a shiver up her body. She pauses, reconsiders her tactic, and immediately dives again for another bite.  
  
Alexei skips into the lounge, ready to get drunk. He stops when his hears little scurrying sounds, ears swiveling to pinpoint the noise. He dropped into a crouch, silently stalking up to the counter.  
  
Tribble'Vana, oblivious to everything, continues munching on the lemon slices.  
  
Alexei creeps over the counter, ready to catch whatever was messing with his bar. he leaned his head over, and saw a fuzzy... thing eating his lemons. "Hey!! those are mine!!" he yowled.  
  
Tribble'Vana lets out a panicked squeak and freezes in place. She's still covered in ink, and now she's also covered in juice and bits of Natarian lemon. She shivers and looks at Alexei, whom she recognizes only from his accent.  
  
"What in fuck even are you," he mutters, grabbing Tribble'Vana and lifting her up to get a better look. "Looks like deformed rat. With no face. Or tail."  
  
Tribble'Vana squeaks in outrage. She frantically tries to escape his grasp and get back to the delicious lemon slices. OK, 'delicious' is a bit of an exaggeration, but they are edible, and that's good enough right now.  
  
"Tsk tsk, faceless rat doesn't get lemons" he says, shaking his big fluffy head.  
  
Tribble'Vana whines sadly. She's hungry, she's dirty and wet and miserable, and all the wants is a damn slice of lemon. She keeps wriggling frantically to escape.  
  
Alexei tightened his grip minutely, beginning to hate the feel of this thing in his paw. "Would faceless rat like vodka?" He asks it while popping open a bottle, and taking a long drink himself.  
  
Tribble'Vana considers this. A drink doesn't count as food, and while she is normally immune to the effects of alcohol, she doubts that tribbles are. Besides, she doesn't think her small body can actually withstand much alcohol. Tribble'Vana stops wriggling so violently, and instead shakes from side to side as if saying no.  
  
Alexei stops and looks down in realization. "You are person" he says, almost horrified.  
  
Tribble'Vana nods frantically.  
  
"Oh god" Oh fuck what if this was the captain?! Or worse, nurse Sindari?! He sets her down on the counter and drops a lemon in front of her. "Who?"  
  
Tribble'Vana frantically eats the lemon before trying to pronounce her name. Again, nothing but squeaks come out, but they vaguely resemble the intonation of her name.  
  
"Tu-eh-ne. Tyene? Is that someone I know?" He watches the little ball of fluff curiously.  
  
Tribble'Vana nods, then squeaks her name again, louder but not any clearer.  
  
"Tyene.. Tyeeannneaa. Tyana. T'Vana?" he rolls the name around until it clicks. "You're T'Vana?"  
  
Tribble'Vana nods frantically and then looks up at Alexei expectantly- not that Alexei can tell, as she has no discernible face.  
  
"And i though i had it bad- you are faceless rat! God help us!" he exclaims, then sighs. "You are okay?"  
  
Tribble'Vana lets out a hungry squeak. She nudges Alexei's hand towards the lemon container, which is flanked by similar boxes containing cherries, olives and the like.  
  
Alexei understands, as he was inexplicably hungry as well. "I will not add this to tab." He grabs the cherries and putting them on a little plate.  
  
Tribble'Vana peeps happily and nuzzles against Alexei's hand for a moment as a way of saying thank you. She wishes she could speak. She also wishes Alexei had given her more cherries, because she has inhaled the ones in the plate in seconds.  
  
Alexei pats her, and adds more cherries and a few olives to the plate, throwing a cherry into his mouth as well.  
  
Tribble'Vana happily munches away at the food, acting like a vacuum cleaner: she advances over it with the entirety of her small round body, and when she moves along, there is nothing left, not even crumbs.

  
K'tsek returns to his favorite place: the lounge.  
The place is almost empty except for a Caitian they don't recognize and...  
"Here you are!" He screams and cross the room to the tribble.  
  
Tribble'Vana squeaks again and hides behind Alexei's hand- she's not scared of K'tsek, but she does not want to be denied food again.  
  
Alexei screams at the booming voice, just narrowly avoiding dropping the cherries.

  
"Don't be afraid of me, boy," he leans and ends up with his face against the counter. "Where did you find him," he asks Alexei, who he still hasn't recognize and still not looking.  
  
"Uhhhhhhhhh. Hm. I don't know what you mean." he lies badly.  
  
Tribble'Vana squeaks and nudges Alexei's hand, as if trying to make him aware of the outrage she feels at present.  
  
K'tsek finally raises two big black eyes to Alexei, not unlike puppies. "That little gay, where did you find him?"  
  
Alexei looked down at T'Vana, and back up to this random human guy. "Her? in bar."  
  
Tribble'Vana peeps in agreement.

  
K'tsek nods, not perturbed to learn his pet is actually a she. "Hey little girl. Are you afraid of me? Did I make something to make you run away?"  
  
Alexei squints at him, then realizes he probably doesn't know that faceless rat is actually an adult Vulcan woman. he debates whether or not he should tell him.  
  
Tribble'Vana nudges Alexei's hand, urging him to tell K'tsek.  
  
"Who are you?" he asks the random guy, because he didn't know if he could be trusted.  
  
"I'm K'tsek Kohr." The man makes the Klingon's salute.  
  
Tribble'Vana gets impatient and rolls over to the containers again. She rolls off the bar and flops onto the one containing olives. She starts eating in utter desperation immediately.  
  
"Really? Well okay, that is T- T'Vana where did you-" he looks around once he notices she disappeared.  
  
K'tsek frowns. "Wait, the tribble is actually that little brave one?" Well, that will be embarrassing tomorrow.  
A chewing sound can be heard coming from the container as Tribble'Vana works her way through the pile of olives, which is diminishing steadily.  
  
Alexei looks down at her and the olives and sighs, grabbing the container and setting it on the counter.  
  
K'tsek absentmindedly pets her, getting olive oil on his hand.  
"Wait, and who are you?" He asks the cat man.  
  
"Alexei. bartender." he says automatically.  
  
Tribble'Vana purrs when petted, but does not stop eating. She is about 3/4s done with the box of olives by now. "I'm starting to think i should put this on tab." he mummers, watching her.  
  
"Oh I did not recognize you? How does it feel to be a cat?" He turns his attention to T'Vana. "She does eat a lot."  
  
Tribble'Vana hisses at Alexei in disagreement. The lab is only worth it if Lodzhal would let her eat the leaves, which he does not.  
  
Alexei rolls his eyes and pets her. "Fine I wont." then to K'tsek, "it is... strange, being organic. I almost feel bad for you all."  
  
K'tsek nods like he understands what Alexei means. Really he doesn't.  
"So," he turns to T'Vana again. "What are we going to do with her? We can't let her eat all the ship supply." He heard story of how that's end.  
  
"We could just keep her here until no longer faceless rat?" he suggests with a shrug.  
  
"You know when it is going to happen?" He asks, serious.  
Tribble'Vana squeaks from the bottom of the now empty box. The Vulcan part of her brain understood their concerns, bu it was easily shadowed by how hungry she still was. "I'm sure the science people will have answers soon" he looks down at T'Vana.  
  
K'tsek nods again. He grabs some cherries and put them in the container for T'Vana.  
"You think she is going to get mind at us once she will be back to normal?"  
  
Tribble'Vana devours the new cherries instantly, and looks up expectantly for more.  
  
Alexei drops in some more. "I'd say she will."  
  
Tribble'Vana peeps. That would be illogical, since they have both treated her well.  
  
Alexei snorts. "Just be glad I'm not making you pay for these" he adds more cherries to her little food enclosure.  
  
K'tsek laughs, actually quietly. "Angry Vulcan are the worst."  
  
Tribble'Vana turns to K'tsek and glares. It is not intimidating in the slightest. She chirps again, asking for more food.  
  
Alexei groans. "How much can one faceless rat eat?!"  
  
Tribble'Vana grunts, offended.  
  
"Hey, don't get mad at me! How would you feel if someone came and ate all your food, huh?" despite his words, he gives her more olives.  
  
Tribble'Vana sulks quietly as she eats her olives.  
  
Trying to be discreet, and failing, K'tsek takes pictures of Tribble'Vana.  
  
He watches K'tsek take photos. Would this make good blackmail?  
  
Tribble'Vana notices K'tsek take pictures, but she does not mind. What she does mind is that she has no more food, and she squeaks again at the two, trying to communicate her wish.  
  
"Lord almighty." he grumbles.  
  
K'tsek hands her more cherry and smiles and his screen. So cute.  
He sends the picture of the tribble to Sindari and Sslith.  
  
Tribble'Vana continues eating her cherries. As a way of saying thank you, she fluffs up for the picture, looking particularly round and soft.  
  
K'tsek snaps another picture, making a delight sound.  
  
Alexei gasps, and runs to the back room and come back with two very large baguettes. "I have bread" he stated.  
  
Tribble'Vana starts to squeak up a riot. Bread!  
  
"Nice!" K'tsek says, looking at his PADD. This picture is sent to his wife. "You think if throw her little ball she would catch it?"  
  
"Only one way to find out" he says, setting the baguettes on the counter.  
  
K'tsek sets his PADD aside, not looking for it any longer. He grabs the baguette, cut it and make a little ball with the inside.  
"Okay T'Vana, ready?"  
  
Tribble'Vana keeps crying dramatically for the bread  
  
Alexei grabs a piece as well, rolling it into a little ball and tossing it in the air lightly.  
  
K'tsek throws his ball to where he believes is T'Vana's head.  
  
The balls awkwardly bounce off Tribble'Vana's round form. She is unable to catch them because she has no arms or legs. However, she soon hurries to eat them from the container floor.  
  
"Awww, I really wanted to see her do cool rat tricks" he said, slightly sad.  
  
"Come on girl! You need to use your mouth!" K'tsek is already grabbing the baguette to make a new ball.

  
Sslith enters the lounge, posse in tow and spots the odd group of people by the bar and heads over, still walking like someone from a human old western movie, but not falling. "Hello, friends! How is everyone? More importantly... who is everyone?"  
  
"I'm Lyle," Lyle says, raising a hand (somewhat unnecessarily, as they're probably the most recognizable of the group.)  
  
"K'tsek Kohr !"  
  
Alexei points to himself. "Alexei, I am cat" then to T'Vana, "the faceless rat is T'Vana."  
  
Tribble'Vana pokes out of the container to see the newcomers and quickly notices that the strong human woman she woke up besides to is there. That was before she knew the entire ship had changed species, but now everything made a lot more sense- that had to be Sslith! She makes purring noises to grab her attention.  
  
Alceste wordlessly follows Sslith until repeating his short introduction again. His eyes widen the slightest amount at T'Vana.

***

Sindari looked down at the notification on her PADD and gasped.  
  
OH NO.  
  
She rushed over to the pen where Ensign Peacock was happily playing with what was once Ensign Huckleberry. The container that was supposed to hold the tribble was knocked over.  
  
Sindari quickly tapped a warning.  
_DON'T FEED THE tribble YOU IDIOTS_  
And rushed out of the med-bay.

***

Sslith stops and states at the small... rat. "Um."  
  
Inn looks down at T'Vana. "Wow."  
  
"She is fine, we are feeding her”, K'tsek says.  
  
Lyle whistles. "And I thought I had it bad. At least I'm not a tribble - what, wait, no, don't feed her!!!"

Alexei nods. "she is very hungry."  
  
Sslith's very, very comfortable lifestyle flashes before her eyes. Suddenly a very important question rises in her mind. "Perchance. Does anyone know if this is permanent or temporary?"  
  
Tribble'Vana manages to knock the container over and roll onto the bar.  
  
"I'd say temporary." It has been all the previous time he was turned into something else.  
  
She reaches in and picks up the tribble, holding her up to her face. She is warm and soft, but not the kind of warm and soft Sslith has become accustomed to. She cradles her against her chest anyway. "Hello, T'Vana. I take it your day has been eventful."  
  
Lyle, meanwhile, has leaned over the bar counter to instinctively sniff Alexei's face before realizing what they're doing and pulling back, embarrassed.  
  
Tribble'Vana's squeak is muffled when she is pressed against Sslith's chest. Nobody can see beneath all her fluff, but she is blushing unbelievably hard. Sslith was normally already very attractive, but there was something familiar about her mammalian form that Tribble'Vana finds very comforting for several reasons. Two reasons, to be precise. Tribble'Vana settles in and begins to purr contentedly.  
  
Alexei blinks, and pulls away as well, not realizing he was doing it to. "Can I interest anyone in vodka?" he coughs, embarrassed.  
  
"Yes!" K'tsek says, really loudly. "That's my ma... Syn... Ca... Friend!"  
  
Sslith raises a hand. "I would like two please!"  
  
"No thank you," Alceste politely declines.  
  
"Uh, sure, sounds good," Lyle says. Their cheeks are notably bluer than before.  
  
Sindari entered the bar and frantically looked around for the escapee.  
  
She spotted her nestled in the mounds of Sslith and sighed. Of course. "Hand over T'Vana." She said. "How much did you feed her?"  
  
Sslith absently pets T'Vana. "You're very soft." She says quietly. "But I'm worried about your-" Sindari interrupts again. Sslith hunches around T'Vana instinctively. "No!"  
  
"Nurse s'Hei"! K'tsek exclaims happily. "Come drink with us!"  
  
"Oh- Sindari, is that you? Hey, we're blue buddies now."  
  
Tribble'Vana squeaks in alarm and wiggles frantically in Sslith's grasp  
  
Alexei blinks. "Well, she ate entire olive and cherry containers, and like, 2 lemons" he listed as he poured everyone's drinks. "That's not a lot." It did not satisfy her, at least.  
  
Why was everyone still screaming. "Tribble. Now." Sindari demanded. "Do you know what happens to tribbles that eat?!" had everyone skipped biology?  
  
Sslith glares at her and pets T'Vana. "I won't let her take you!"  
  
"I don't know what tribble is, but she's fine" Alexei rolls his eyes.  
  
Alceste nods, taking a seat and folding his hands on the bar counter.  
  
Tribble'Vana nuzzles against Sslith tenderly. She knows Sslith will protect her, and she loves her dearly... but her time is up. She has been busted. She needs to escape from Sindari. Tribble'Vana wriggles frantically in Sslith's hands, so hard that it becomes hard to hold onto her.  
  
Sindari walks over to Sslith and the well buried T'Vana. "I am not asking, I am ordering." She reaches out to the fuzzy creature.  
  
Inn was pointedly pretending not to be there.  
  
Tribble'Vana squeaks in alarm and finally frees herself. She flops to the ground, shakes herself off, and quickly begins to scurry between the tables and chairs, trying to get Sindari off her tail.  
  
Sslith yelps in despair at losing her gi- pe-? Her T'Vana.  
  
Sindari is not as dexterous as she was when she is Romulan, but she does her best to keep up with the strangely fast tribble.

Sslith chases after her, knocking into tables and chairs and making a general mess with no hope of catching her. She plugs straight into Sindari at a particularly tight corner and pushes her across a tabletop. "Dammit!"  
  
Alexei just watches the show, munching on a piece of bread.  
  
Sindari growled in the way only an Ossurian can. "Do you want a ship full of tribbles?!" She exclaimed.  
  
Sslith seriously thinks about that question. "......No?"  
  
Alceste hops off his seat and takes out his phaser, sets it to a low stun level, aims, and misses several times.  
  
Tribble'Vana looks back and startles when she sees Sindari is keeping up with her. She lets out a dramatic peep directed at Sslith- her lover, her savior- as she rolls out of the lounge and into the corridors as fast as she can, in what a human would call a hail-Mary pass.  
  
K'tsek sips his drink. "She is on your right- she is going under the table- at 4 o'clock-"  
  
Lyle's newfound cat instincts are suddenly triggered by "small, fast-moving furry creature." Pupils blown wide, they POUNCE- and narrowly miss as Tribble'Vana makes a particularly sharp turn and dodges out into the hall.  
  
Alceste holsters his phaser and studies the empty corridor before returning to his seat at the bar.  
  
"You're okay little cat?" K'tsek asks from his sit."Need any medical help?"  
  
Lyle bounces back to their feet with a frustrated little growl and sprints out into the corridors.  
  
"Guess the answer is no," K'tsek mumbles in his drink.  
  
Alceste taps his com badge. "Tarik to Security, there's a tribble on the loose, deck eight— it's Lady T'Vana."  
  


***

Security gets the call. It’s been a trying day but the entire staff looks up in horror as the Romulan Chief stands and screams “TRIBBLES!” Not even hearing Alceste mention that it’s lady T’Vana. Anda is out of the room in a flash!

***  
  


Tribble'Vana rolls through the corridors as fast as she can, dodging the feet of passing officers with skill. She may not be familiar with the jefferies tubes, but she does know her way around the corridors, of course- and she is headed straight for the cafeteria.  
  
Sindari stumbles out of the lounge and spots the little T'Vana bolting away. Growling she sprinted after her.  
  
Tribble'Vana notices the growl and looks back to see Sindari. Her hair raises involuntarily, and with a determined squeak she picks up her pace.  
  
Lyle has recovered from their whiffed pounce and also scrambles out of the lounge in pursuit of the tribble, their small size and the new spacial awareness of their antennae giving them an advantage in dodging through the crowd.  
  
"T'Vana!!" She shouted, bowling over the unfortunate Betazoid that happened to be in her way.  
  
Tribble'Vana keeps rolling down the corridor. She loves Sindari, and in normal circumstances she would never disobey her like this, but she has no option. Sindari doesn't understand- nobody understands the deep emptiness of her stomach, the obsession that is filling her every thought. She cannot be placed back in the pen, for she has tasted freedom and she can no longer be contained. Tribble'Vana scurries into the cafeteria, mostly unnoticed as most people's attention is fixed on Sindari.  
  
Lyle pounces again - and misses as she rolls into the cafeteria, sliding into the wall with an offended squawk.

***

Tribble'Vana rolls into the cafeteria, having successfully evaded Sindari and Lyle. She quickly makes her way into the pantry, unseen and undetected. Tribble'Vana lets out a series of small grunts that sound very much like smug laughter as she rolls along, only to bump into something hard.  
  
Her fur stands on end in awe as she looks up. Towering over Tribble'Vana are the pantry shelves, reaching so high she cannot see the top, brimming with all kinds of food: rows upon rows of ripe fruit, plump gespar, ripe sash-savas, succulent stalks of khara and bertakk, fragrant fori leaves, freshly-baked krei'la, pulpy red hirat and intense fire-fruits, containers full of sweet fried ameelah dessert, an entire vat of t'mirak rice... all smell enticingly and glisten in a myriad of colors as they call Tribble'Vana toward them.  
  
Tribble'Vana reaches a spiritual state she has been unable to ever attain in her entire life as a Vulcan. Her endless search for enlightenment has come to a close. She will never again hunger, never again want for anything, everything she ever desired has been found. She is home.... The pantry seems to glow with a heavenly light as angelic music fills her mind. A single tear of ecstasy escapes Tribble'Vana as she lets out a breathless sigh, before throwing herself with utter abandon to the mountain of food.  
  
Sindari entered the cafeteria and tapped her comm badge "s'Hei to Chief Anda. We have a tribble in the cafeteria."

  
She looked around trying to spot where T'Vana could have gone.  
  
Anda knocks Sindari over running into the cafeteria. They tumble spectacularly to the floor with an umph. After the call from Alceste the Chief made their way here first and foremost to secure the food. “Where!!!” They scream still laying on the nurse.  
  
Sindari growled at the sudden noise and covered her ears. "I DON'T KNOW." She shouted back at the Chief.  
  
Anda gets up from the floor and stands with phaser at the ready and a mean look on their face. They scan the room instantly. The only thought in their mind: ‘Tribbles! Why did it have to be tribbles!!!’  
  
Lyle saunters in very casually like they didn't run into a wall a moment ago. Frustratingly, there's no sign of Tribble'Vana.  
  
Sindari got up and headed to the kitchen, hoping that T'Vana was being predicable enough. She looked over the food stores looking for any sign of the tribble.  
  
Anda combat rolls into the kitchen and stands at the ready. Their eyes darting left and right. Without their sensitive hearing who knew where the threat could be hiding!  
  
Tribble'Vana is indeed predictable, and she is also not subtle. She is rummaging through the pantry making constant nibbling noises, rolling from side to side on the shelves as she devours fruit, bread, dry grains and everything she can get to from chewing through the bags or toppling over the containers.  
  
Sindari looked at Anda like they had lost their mind. Guess they were enjoying being a Romulan. "T'Vana!" She spotted the fruit thief and grabbed her.  
  
T'Vana lets out a yelp as she is picked up. She wiggles in Sindari's grasp fruitlessly (hah).  
  
“T’Vana!!!” Anda exclaims, still holding their phaser. They eye the tribble. Oh no, it ate!!!  
  
Tribble'Vana does become actually scared when she sees who she believes to be Chief Anda, probably, coming at her with a drawn phaser.  
  
Sindari clutches T'Vana close. "Put the damn phaser away" she snarled. "I need to run tests." she said sheepishly.  
  
Anda raises a very Romulan brow “that is a threat to the entire ship! Who knows if she’s given birth yet! Don’t you remember last time?!” They do however holster their weapon.  
  
Tribble'Vana makes a pathetic whiny noise and nuzzles against Sindari.  
  
Sindari pets T'Vana. "If she was going to reproduce she would have already." She said. "Check with the computer there is only one tribble aboard."  
  
Anda frowns. “Computers can be tampered with” they say conspiratorially. Still they check the system from the kitchen.  
  
Meanwhile, Lyle has realized that with their untested cat instincts it might be better to leave the tribble hunt to someone else. They've also discovered that they're absolutely starving after the chase, and have gone over to a replicator to find some breakfast - oooh, bacon. Bacon sounds good.  
  
Tribble'Vana feels a bit comforted at Sindari's petting. She looks back at the pantry- so close, and yet so far away... if she had hands, she would stretch them out, as if trying to reach for it in a dramatic goodbye.  
  
Sindari walks past the Chief, tribblefied girlfriend in tow. "Thank you for your help, Chief." She said quickly and marched away to find a box to put T'Vana in.

***

  
Sindari enters the med-bay and looks for a better box to place her girlfriend in.  
  
Tribble'Vana nuzzles against Sindari softly. She was still hungry, but she was starting to feel tired too- and seeing Sindari again reminded her that she was upset with Verelan, apparently. Tribble'Vana does not want her to feel like she is upset with her too. She purrs softly in an effort to comfort Sindari.  
  
Sindari smiles at the sounds T'Vana was admitting and pulled down a small cardboard box with tiny holes in the side. It was the only thing in the med-bay with a lid right now, hopefully tribbles didn't eat cardboard.  
  
She placed a small kiss on T'Vana's ink stained head, not bothered by the mess that was stuck in the tribbles fur and set her down in the box.  
  
"You have caused quiet the uproar for such a logical Vulcan." She said.  
  
Tribble'Vana lets out a deflated peep. She was just hungry, she hadn't meant to upset anyone- specially not Sindari. Tribble'Vana comes up to the border of the box and props herself up, looking up at Sindari and wondering what her eyes look like beneath the goggles today.  
  
Sindari looks at the mass of fur and smiles. There was still much to do in the med-bay and she wasn't going to be able to keep an eye on T'Vana and the rest of the crew.  
  
She gave T'Vana one last pat and closed the lid on the box and slipped it under her arm. It didn't' seem fair to leave her in the med-bay, she had just had an eventful day, so Sindari headed towards T'Vana's room.  
  


***

Tribble'Vana can feel each of Sindari's steps, and notices when the box gets placed down carefully.  
  
Sindari looks around the room and notices the calligraphy scroll that lead to the air ducts. Sighing she pulled it down and rolled it up carefully, placing it far away from the ink that was spilled everywhere. Elements, this place was a mess.  
  
She lifted the lid on the box and carefully placed T'Vana on the pillow.  
"Please, do not go anywhere." she said.  
  
Tribble'Vana replies with a quiet squeak, but she does note the fact that the scroll has been taken down. The vent is too high up for her to reach it without that. She would not mind being left in her quarters so much if she could use the replicators with her voice... still, the pillow was very soft, and this was also nice. Tribble'Vana fluffs up and rolls to half-cover herself with Sslith's fluffy pink blanket.  
  
Sindari gives the room one last go over making sure there was no where that a tribble could get into trouble. Sighing she shut off the light and headed out, back to the med-bay to see if there was anyway to turn them all back.

***

  
Sslith sits up in her chair in the lounge, brows set in a miserable crumple. "T'Vana..." she heads back to the bar. "I would like 3, please."  
  
K'tsek pats her shoulder. "She will be back," he says softly. "Once she is back to being Vulcan."  
  
Inn pats Sslith on the arm, but tears away with a hiss. Right. Touch telepathy. "Sorry."  
  
Sslith nods. "I just-" she slams the 3 vodka shots in a row. "I just love her SO MUCH!"  
At this point, Sslith realizes that perhaps her drinking habits were bolstered by her Gorn genetics. She is drunk.  
  
"She loves you too buddy" K'tsek holds on Sslith is more firm, supportive.  
  
Alceste gives Sslith a smile. "I'm very glad. Security will do everything they can," he reassures.  
  
Sslith shakes her head. "She loves SNACKS!!" Tears shine in her human eyes.  
  
"You definitely are a snack dude!" K'tsek screams, ordering another drink.  
  
Alceste nods and turns to Alexei. "Could you get her a glass of water, please?"  
  
Sslith turns to him and grabs him by the collar, leaning in inches from his face. "I am no such thing! I'm pink! I'm soft! My tail is gone! I'm re-pul-siiive." Sslith has devolved into sobs. "T'Vana is a- a beautiful luxurious tribble queen, and I sweat now!!! She will never love me back!" She bites down on a knuckle to weep openly.  
  
Alexei pours her a glass of water. "I still don't know what tribble is."  
  
K'tsek looks at the woman with widen eyes. "That's rough buddy."  
  
Alceste gives Sslith a soft pat on the back. "You look very nice," he encourages her genuinely and thanks Alexei.

  
Sslith drinks the water. "That luxe, soft, beautiful ball of fur that we just chased around the lounge- that's a tribble, and you're lucky, because you met the prettiest one ever to live!"  
  
Sslith lays her head down on the bar. "Good night..." she is asleep.  
  
K'tsek looks at the sleeping woman, than at the rest of the group. "Does anyone have super strength to carry her to bed?"  
  
Alceste looks to Inn. "If you'd feel comfortable carrying her, I'd like to go with you," he suggests.  
  
Sslith snuffles in her sleep and slacks her lips.  
  
With a sigh, K'tsek abandons his drink. He pass Sslith's arm over his shoulder and support her with difficulty. This is going to be a long walk.  
  
Inn jumps up to help, pretty glad for his Vulcan strength.  
  
Alceste follows the others with concern.

***

K'tsek is glad when they finally reaches Sslith bedroom. Inn uses the medical code to opens the door and they try to delicately puts her in the bed, mindful not to crush the sleeping tribble, who magically doesn't awake.  
  
"Thank you both for helping," Alceste murmurs with a smile.  
  
K'tsek nods. "Where are you heading now?" He wants to murmur, but really he just talk softly.  
  
Inn nods. "Of course. i have to head back down to med-bay, ill you you both later." he dips his head to them and heads out.  
  
Will leaves EJs room, eventually and gets redressed in his own before hitting the corridors  
  
"Good luck," Alceste tells Inn. "I'll be in my quarters, I have research to finish." He steps toward the doors and glances back at T'Vana and Sslith asleep, then gives K'tsek a nod before leaving.  
  
K'tsek leaves the room after them, being careful to lock them. He wonders where he should go now.  
  
Sslith snuggles up to Tribble'Vana and shoves her face deep in her fluff, not realizing that it's not exactly T'Vana's face she's nuzzling.


End file.
